1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a recording material and an image recording method, and more particularly relates to a recording material on which an image is recorded thereto and an image recording method for recording an image onto this recording material.
2. Description of the Related Art
Photographic paper used to make a color print is conventionally coated with three kinds of emulsions, which are blue, green and red sensitive emulsions, in a layers. When a color image recorded on a negative film is printed, yellow, magenta and cyan components of the color image are exposed on the blue, green and red sensitive emulsion layers, respectively. Thus, the color image is formed on the photographic paper by the images exposed on the respective layers.
In a conventional color print, after the exposed photographic paper is subjected to developing processing, the color image fades and saturation of the color image is reduced as time passes so that so-called fading is caused.
Therefore, in a conventional fading correcting method, the image fading is corrected such that, the saturations of three components which are the yellow, magenta and cyan components of the color image are uniformly increased.
However, when fading characteristics of each of three layers which are the blue, green and red sensitive emulsion layers in the above photographic paper are different from one another, the speed at which fading progresses is different for each color component. Therefore, when the color correction is carried out uniformly as in the above method, there is the concern that the color tone balance of the color print will be changed.
Another fading correcting method has been considered in which an operator visually judges the state of the color tone balance of an image and sets a correcting amount for each of the above three color components. The image discoloration is corrected on the basis of the set correcting amounts which are set for respective color components.
However, a high-level judging ability for suitably setting the correcting amount for each of the three color components is required to execute this method so that only an expert operator can execute this method. Further, since a person subjectively makes this judgment, and sets the correcting amounts, and carries out this fading correction, there is the concern that the qualities of the images which have been subjected to fading correction will vary widely in accordance with the persons (operators) carrying out the fading correction.
Fading also occurs over time in a negative or positive film used in photographing as well in photographic papers. Accordingly, it is also important to suitably carry out fading correction processing with respect to films so as to stabilize the quality of the color prints finally made to a constant level.